Pirita (river)

The Pirita (Estonian: Pirita jõgi) is a 105 km (65 mi) long river in northern Estonia that drains into Tallinn Bay (part of the Gulf of Finland) in Pirita, Tallinn. The basin area of the Pirita is 799 km².

For the 1980 Summer Olympics held in Moscow, the estuary to the Gulf of Finland at Tallinn Bay hosted the sailing events.

As part of the Tallinn water supply system, the Pirita is impounded into the Paunküla and Vaskjala Reservoirs. The reservoir in Vaskjala is connected over a canal to the Lake Ülemiste in Tallinn, where the Ülemiste Water Treatment Plant is situated. Additional water is directed to Pirita from the Jägala, Soodla and Pärnu rivers through a canal network that joins Pirita in Veskitaguse.

Spring flooding on the headwaters in Kose.

Spring flooding on the headwaters in Kose.

Pedestrian bridge in Kose.

Pedestrian bridge in Kose.

Aerial view of the Pirita near Jüri.

Aerial view of the Pirita near Jüri.

References

Coordinates: 59°27′52.27″N 24°50′6.24″E / 59.4645194°N 24.8350667°E / 59.4645194; 24.8350667

Pirita

Pirita is one of the eight administrative districts (Estonian: linnaosa) of Tallinn, the capital of Estonia.

Pirita occupies a relatively big area, but compared to other districts of Tallinn its population of 16,636 (as of1 Jan 2012) is relatively small. It mostly consists of private houses, instead of the large blocks of flats typical of some other districts of Tallinn, such as Lasnamäe and Mustamäe. Large parts of the district consist of newly built, modern buildings and houses. Pirita beach is located in Pirita.

Pirita is one of the most prestigious and wealthiest districts of Tallinn, partly thanks to natural benefits such as its beach and yachting harbour. Pirita beach is the largest in Tallinn, and in the summer can attract up to 30,000 visitors a day.

Population

Pirita has a population of 17,592 (As of 1 November 2014).

Subdistricts

Pirita is divided into 9 subdistricts (Estonian: asum): Iru, Kloostrimetsa, Kose, Laiaküla, Lepiku, Maarjamäe, Merivälja, Mähe and Pirita.

Landmarks

Phantom (UAV)

Phantom is a series of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) developed by the Chinese company DJI. These non-military quadcopters or drones are intended for recreational and commercial aerial cinematography and photography. The body frames are made of composite materials. Propulsion is provided by four two-blade propellers driven by four electric engines mounted at the ends of the x-shaped body.

Features

Phantom 1

The Phantom 1, originally known as Phantom, was released in January, 2013. It was commonly equipped with a GoPro camera for amateur film making or photography. It was first ready-to-fly drone that used GPS. Its battery life was less than 10 minutes.

Phantom 2

The Phantom 2 was released in December, 2013. Upgrades include auto-return, increased flight speed, increased flight time and controllable range, increased battery capacity, smartphones, tablets and even some smart glasses compatibility, WI-FI module and is available in different performances. Its configuration allows users to remotely tilt the camera and adjust its orientation on two axes for a better level shot.

Tallinn

Tallinn (/ˈtɑːlɪn/,Estonian pronunciation: [ˈtɑlʲˑinˑ]) is the capital and largest city of Estonia.

Tallinn occupies an area of 159.2 km² (61.5 sq mi) and has a population of 440,043. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, 80 km (50 mi) south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is ranked as a global city and has been listed among the top 10 digital cities in the world. The city was a European Capital of Culture for 2011, along with Turku in Finland.

The city was known as Reval from the 13th century until 1918 and again during the Nazi occupation of Estonia from 1941 to 1944.

Approximately 32% of Estonia's total population lives in Tallinn.

Toponymy

Historical names

In 1154, a town called Qlwn or Qalaven (possible derivations of Kalevan or Kolyvan) was put on the world map of the Almoravid by the Arab cartographer Muhammad al-Idrisi, who described it as a small town like a large castle among the towns of Astlanda. It has been suggested that the Quwri in Astlanda may have denoted the predecessor town of today's Tallinn.